Printing apparatus and maintenance method thereof

Abstract

After printing based on each job is ended, a printing control unit controls an operation of a printing unit so that an inspection pattern is printed on a print sheet in a period during which a conveyance control unit is keeping a conveyance speed of a print sheet at a constant speed. A maintenance content determination unit determines a maintenance content for the printing unit on the basis of an inspection result obtained by inspecting a print image for the inspection pattern. The printing control unit controls operations of the printing unit and a cleaning mechanism depending on the maintenance content determined by the maintenance content determination unit.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A printing apparatus comprising:
 a conveying mechanism configured to convey a print medium;   a printing unit composed of a plurality of print heads configured to perform printing on the print medium by ejecting ink;   a cleaning mechanism configured to clean the printing unit;   an inspection device configured to inspect a print image obtained by printing;   a conveyance control unit configured to control a conveyance speed at which the conveying mechanism conveys the print medium;   a printing control unit configured to control operations of the printing unit and the cleaning mechanism;   a maintenance content determination unit configured to determine a maintenance content for the printing unit;   a monitoring unit configured to detect an event by which the printing should be interrupted; and   a print medium supply unit configured to supply the print medium to the printing unit, wherein   the conveyance control unit accelerates the print medium until the conveyance speed changes from 0 to a predetermined reference speed before printing based on each job is started, conveys the print medium so that the conveyance speed of the print medium is kept at a constant speed including the reference speed at least in a period during which the printing based on each job is being executed, and decelerates the print medium until the conveyance speed changes from the constant speed to 0 after the printing based on each job is ended,   the printing control unit controls an operation of the printing unit so that an inspection pattern is printed on the print medium in a period during which the conveyance speed is being kept at the constant speed,   the maintenance content determination unit determines the maintenance content for the printing unit based on an inspection result obtained by inspecting the print image for the inspection pattern by the inspection device,   the maintenance content determination unit determines the maintenance content for the printing unit after an event by which the printing should be interrupted is detected by the monitoring unit,   the monitoring unit detects, as the event by which the printing should be interrupted, an event in which an amount of the print medium remaining in the print medium supply unit is reduced to a predetermined value or less, and   the printing control unit controls the operations of the printing unit and the cleaning mechanism in accordance with the maintenance content determined by the maintenance content determination unit.   
     
     
         2 . The printing apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein
 the printing control unit controls the operation of the printing unit so that a first inspection pattern and a second inspection pattern are printed as the inspection pattern in a period during which the conveyance speed is being kept at the constant speed,   the first inspection pattern is printed before printing of a main image based on a processing target job is performed,   the second inspection pattern is printed after the printing of the main image based on the processing target job is performed,   when an event by which the printing should be interrupted is detected by the monitoring unit, the printing control unit controls the operation of the printing unit so that the second inspection pattern is printed after a sheet that is being printed, and   the maintenance content determination unit determines the maintenance content for the printing unit based on the inspection result obtained by inspecting the print image for the second inspection pattern by the inspection device.   
     
     
         3 . The printing apparatus according to  claim 2 , wherein the maintenance content determination unit determines the maintenance content for the printing unit after the inspection result obtained by inspecting the print image for the first inspection pattern by the inspection device is detected, by the monitoring unit, as an event by which the printing should be interrupted. 
     
     
         4 . The printing apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein
 the print medium supply unit has an auto splicing function to automatically switch a roll paper with a reduced remaining amount to a new roll paper, and   the printing control unit controls, while the printing on the new roll paper is being prepared, the operations of the printing unit and the cleaning mechanism in accordance with the maintenance content determined by the maintenance content determination unit.